Tilburg Railway Workshops

site Burgemeester Brokxlaan, 5041 Tilburg, NL
client Gemeente Tilburg, Stadhuisplein 130, 5038 Tilburg, NL
urban design BOGDAN & VAN BROECK, Ludo Hermans (municipality of Tilburg)
team O.Bogdan, M. Czvek, V. Ionescu, M. Pocuch, L. Van Broeck, S. Verstraete, T. Willemse
surface 180.000 m² gross
budget confidential
timing selection 2015 | completion 2020
status completed
project code 0117OST

REDEVELOPMENT STRATEGY FOR TILBURG’S RAILWAY WORKSHOPS | DIRECT COMMISSION FROM THE CLIENT

The Spoorzone seeks urban inclusion. It is a breeding ground for innovation and development on the fertile base of the industrial past and intermediate initiatives. It is a place for cultural, social and economical tolerance in constant evolution. It derives its identity from its innovative and flexible approach in the development process. The incremental transformation starts from the point of view of the different users, in the short and the long term and the small and large scale.

The Spoorzone aims to be an urban community: a social, cultural and economical ‘urban frame’ that supports social participation, creativity and new forms of entrepreneurship. Intermediate uses and art integration play a crucial role here.

The Spoorzone as a railroad – a metaphor: The spatial figure of the Spoorzone can be seen as a railway consisting of two rails (Locomotiefpad and Burgemeester Brokxlaan) enabling the longitudinal movements; the rail sleepers ensuring the transversal porosity and the gaps between the sleepers – the spaces in between. This spatial figure has the ambition to give a unique identity to the zone all the way from the Koepelhal to the Zwijsen area, with a subsystem of places with their own characters with very specific configurations of the existing and the new. This diversity of spaces makes the Spoorzone a unique fabric within the city, while safeguarding its historical specificities.

Selected publications: Architectenweb